Grammarians literally in an uproar over loose definition of literally

Monday

Aug 26, 2013 at 12:05 PMAug 26, 2013 at 12:18 PM

Bill Walsh REPORTS that the Grammar Police are in a state of disputation these days:

“We did it guys, we finally killed English.”

With that subject line and a screen shot of Google’s definition of “literally,” a Reddit user concerned about the language (if not about the correct use of commas) sparked a figurative firestorm this month.

The definition in question:

Literally, Adverb

1. In a literal manner or sense; exactly.

2. Used to acknowledge that something is not literally true but is used for emphasis or to express strong feeling.

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Pat Cunningham

Bill Walsh REPORTS that the Grammar Police are in a state of disputation these days:

“We did it guys, we finally killed English.”

With that subject line and a screen shot of Google’s definition of “literally,” a Reddit user concerned about the language (if not about the correct use of commas) sparked a figurative firestorm this month.

The definition in question:

Literally, Adverb

1. In a literal manner or sense; exactly.

2. Used to acknowledge that something is not literally true but is used for emphasis or to express strong feeling.